The bond of music.

Back in the day....(I remember the first time I heard one of my kids say "back in the day" and my grammar police self struggled like crazy to figure out if they meant back in the those days, or back on that day..ha ha) .... of cassette tapes, remember those?

I would purchase a new one maybe every two or three months.  We lived on a very tight budget and though I loved music above most all things, eating came first.  So, I would get that divine cassette and immediately make a copy of it so if anything horrible happened, like cassette tape spaghetti, the original would be safe.  I took that tape everywhere I went and listened to it in the car over and over.  It became the soundtrack of my life for that specific time period.  I knew every song by heart, even the harmonies. Harry Chapin's Greatest Hits sang us to and from the lake so many times that 30,000 Pounnds of Bananas became like a part of the family.  Goodness I miss Harry. I bonded with music in a way that today, with so many music options available to us, I'm not sure happens. 

If I had to look back in to the 80's and pick one cassette (that wasn't Harry, cuz Harry was as good as it gets) it would be Michael Johnson "Wings", and the song....THAT song was "Give Me Wings".  That song was my musical mantra for so many years....goodness.  It was during a time that I felt like I was living my life with my arms tied behind my back and I hung on to that song like a life rope. I'm sure that time in my life has a lot to do with why I continue to be so fascinated by wings and feathers.

Yesterday afternoon AH and I had the pleasure of seeing Michael Johnson in person via Charlottes Web. The concert was located in what used to be First Presbyterian and is now Mendelssohn Hall.  It was a small crowd in a freezing room (they haven't got the heat figured out yet) but the acoustics are fantastic and the building itself is a revelation as was Mr. Johnson.

Turns out that he is a rock-your-world class guitar player and truly funny guy. I wasn't expecting that.  He did not sing "my" song, which made me a little sad, but I was too big a chicken to request it.  I thought maybe it would seem a little stalker/creepy to go tell the guy that his song basically kept hope alive in my heart for a good ten years.  What he did sing was a mixture of music from his new CD (which he had none to sell and it became the joke of the night. "This song is from the the cd....which you can't have.") and a few of the oldies.  Interestingly, much of what he said resonated as much as what he sang.  There was even a small shout out to Grand Marias (YAY). I have to love a guy who appreciates the great, blue north as much as I do.

Occasionally when we listen to recorded music and bond with a song or album, seeing the artist in person with all thier imperfect humanity showing can be a little dissapointing.  Not so with Michael Johnson.  If anything I appreciate him and his artistry much more. 

Thanks for a lovely afternoon, Mr. Johnson, and for thanks for once-upon-a time singing a song that helped me to fly.

Comments

[wenders]

Ah, music. The Indigo Girls' Southland in the Summer is the song I listened to my entire first year of being away from Texas. And then that summer when I was back in Texas again. It is the song I think of when I think of leaving home. You know, things have been rocky this past year and I'm realizing I don't have music that's helping me get through it. I should remedy that asap. . . music can be so healing. I'm glad you got to go the concert and shared this song. It may end up on my February 2013 playlist!